March 12, 2015
It’s Math
Greg Easterbrook’s recent column “Our Navy is Big Enough” in the New York Times demonstrates that one lecture at the Naval War College does not a naval expert make. Easterbrook advances two arguments. First that the Navy, at 275 ships, is large enough to meet all of the nation’s naval maritime security needs. Secondly he states that the Navy’s proposed budget proposed budget of $161 billion is far in excess of spending requirements. That he would correlate the size of the Navy’s budget with the size of the force deployed demonstrates his shallow awareness of matters maritime. In both the case of the size of the fleet and the size of the budget, it all comes down to math.
The size of the fleet is measured largely against two separate standards. The first is the size of the force necessary to fight and win the nation’s wars. This standard often looks first to the capabilities a potential challenger might field and then estimates the size of the US naval force required to ensure US victory. Such analysis attempts to present the capabilities required to operate in a lethal and effective manner. Cost and efficiency factor into these calculations but not in a large way. Decisive victory is the objective.
Read the full piece at USNI.
More from CNAS
-
A Resource-Sustainable Strategy for Countering Violent Extremist Organizations
Commentary
The United States has been trying to pivot from counterterrorism to strategic interstate competition for almost a decade....
By Stephen Tankel
-
The United States Can’t Quit on the UN
Commentary
U.S. retrenchment empowers only China....
By Kristine Lee
-
Sharper: America and the United Nations
Commentary
The UN is emerging as a key arena for ideological competition as authoritarian actors seek to bend the organization toward illiberalism....
By Kristine Lee, Chris Estep & Cole Stevens
-
Overcoming the Tyranny of Time: The Role of U.S. Forward Posture in Deterrence and Defense
Commentary
The next defense strategy has the opportunity to codify the critical role of forward posture....
By Billy Fabian
